Ecclestone Labels Bahrain Government as 'Stupid'

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F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has risked a frosty reception at the Bahrain Grand Prix, after branding the country’s government ‘stupid’.



The race in Sakhir has come under scrutiny a lot recently, with sections of the population using it as a stage for their protests against the kingdom’s Sunni Muslim regime and it was cancelled in 2011 over safety fears.

And now Ecclestone, who has previously been full of praise for the organisation of the Grand Prix, has come out and called Bahrain’s government ‘stupid’ for electing to host the race.

‘The government here are really in a lot of ways stupid to put this race on because it’s a platform for people to use to protest, I don’t think it’s for us to decide the politics, good or bad. It’s a good circuit, a good race, and we think everybody’s happy so we’re here.’

But Prince Salman bin Hamad Isa Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince of Bahrain, laughed off the comments.

‘It’s Bernie being Bernie,’ he said. ‘I love Bernie and his quotes. I think it’s funny. I have a sense of humour. People will know he’s being sarcastic. I can’t be thankful enough for his support.’

Tomorrow’s race will get underway with Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg on pole, followed by championship leader Sebastian Vettel in second and Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso in third. You can take part in RaceDepartment's dedicated thread here

Image: ibnlive
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